Real Madrid

All eyes will be on Spain as the world’s biggest club football match is played on Saturday. The first El Clasico of the season will be held at the Santiago Bernabeu as Real Madrid hosts Barcelona.  

What makes a rivalry?  Does it have to be fueled by hate, or could a rivalry just be the acts of greatness shown by the two involved, where each pushes the other to reach heights they may have never achieved without that competitive adversary?  In the NBA, Magic Johnson had Larry Bird; in the NFL, Peyton Manning has Tom Brady; tennis has Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer. Right now in the world of soccer Lionel Messi has Cristiano Ronaldo.

He was the man of the match when Real Madrid claimed “La Decima” over arch-rivals Atletico Madrid. With him, Los Merengues won two Copa del Rey titles, one Supercopa de Espana, the 2011-12 La Liga title, and the 2014 UEFA Super Cup. Yet, Argentine international Angel Di Maria said he was forced out of Madrid in order to cover costs.

Cristiano Ronaldo's Careless Whisper in the ear of PSG coach Laurent Blanc has received a lot of attention this week. 

To hear the press tell it, there is no way Cristiano whispered anything other than "I will totally force a move to PSG this summer and then we can use the oil money to take over the world. Of European football."

Of course, the chances of him actually having whispered that are slim to none. We, personally, do not believe Ronaldo whispered anything of the sort. 

French International Karim Benzema is in the custody of French police on Wednesday and being held for questioning regarding his alleged involvement in a blackmail attempt on Olympique Lyonnais winger Mathieu Valbuena, according to ESPN.

July 14, 2012 marked the first-team debut of a 13-year-old kid from Drammen, Norway. Since then, the world has been witness to the record-breaking career of one of soccer’s fastest rising stars: Martin Ødegaard.

An interview Cristiano Ronaldo gave back in August was released last Sunday. In it Ronaldo does nothing less than state that he believes he is better than Lionel Messi, the player widely accepted to be the best in the world.  

Cristiano Ronaldo has already been established as a giving person, and that perception was reestablished when he sent a signed Real Madrid Jersey to Andres Moreno. 

We should explain. Andres Moreno tips the scales at about 960 lbs., and is considered the most obese man in the world. He's not taken to kindly to that title, though, and is trying to lose weight.

Moreno recently underwent weight-loss surgery to kick-start that process, and received a surprise gift after the first procedure was successful: a signed Cristiano Ronaldo jersey.

Cristiano Ronaldo has a new pair of boots coming out, and, consequently, Nike and Ronaldo are really ramping up the advertising campaign. The Nike Mercurial Superfly was supposedly inspired by Ronaldo's home island in Portugal, Madeira, as this video shows.

What troubles us is the phrase "these boots have goals." We don't know what it means. It could mean any number of things.